Hot Takes

Justin Gaethje holding the lightweight belt in 2026 is the best story in the sport right now.

Late-career losing streaks shouldn't count against anyone's legacy.

Weight cuts are the real opponent. Same-day weigh-ins would change the whole sport.

Southpaws have the biggest built-in advantage in the sport and nobody talks about it enough.

Brock Lesnar did more for UFC pay-per-view than any heavyweight before or since.

A draw in a title fight should mean an immediate rematch, not a champion who moves on.

Ciryl Gane getting the belt without beating the champion is the least satisfying way to crown anybody.

Sean Strickland as middleweight champion is the funniest thing that could have happened to the UFC's PR team.

Non-title main events should be three rounds. Most of them are ten minutes of two tired guys surviving.

Alexander Volkanovski is the most underrated all-time great. He belongs in everyone's top five.

Elbows from top position should be scored like knockdowns. They do more damage than any jab.

Max Holloway is the best boxer the UFC has ever had. That volume should not be humanly possible.

Dustin Poirier is the best fighter never to hold an undisputed UFC title.

The 10-point must system is broken. Half-point scoring would fix most robberies overnight.

Chuck Liddell was the UFC's first real superstar and the sport owes him more than it gives him.

Dricus du Plessis has the ugliest style that works in the entire sport. Nobody can solve it.

Joanna Jedrzejczyk vs. Zhang Weili 1 is the best women's fight the UFC has ever put on.

Khabib retiring at 29-0 was the smartest career move in MMA history. Nobody ever got to see the decline.

Fighter pay is the real scandal in this sport. The fighters are the product and they get the smallest slice.